Joist-notcher.



.l. W. MADIGAN.

JOIST NOTCHER.

APPLICATION FlLED 05030. 1914.

1,149,663. Patented Aug. 10, 1915.

WITNESSES:

JWJUadigan.

UNITED sTA'rEs PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN w. MADIGAN, or v NnnftB'IL'r, PENNSYLVANIA, AssiGNon 0F ONELHALF 'ro H. GOODWIN, or VANIDERBILT, PENNSYLVANIA;

JoIs'r-Norcrrnn.

I Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 10, 1915.

Application filed December 30, 1914. Serial N 0. 879,738.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN W. MADIGAN, residing at Vanderbilt, in the county of Fayette and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and Improved J oist-Notcher, of which the following is a specification.

My invention has for its object to provide a simple, inexpensive and easily manipulated portable machine or appliance for cutting the joist notches for accommodating electric and plumbing conduits, gas fitting, etc., and in its generic nature it comprises a rotary cutting element and a supporting means therefor arranged for being held to the desired position by one hand of the operator, while said operator manipulates an operating crank with the other hand.

In its more complete nature, my invention embodies, in a joist notching mechanism of the general character stated, means whereby the said mechanism may be adapted for notching either the ceiling or floor joists, as the operator remains standing on the floor, and which may be readily utilized for the intended purposes by unskilled labor.

With other objects in view that will hereinafter appear, my invention consists in the peculiar combination and ,novel arrangement of the parts hereinafter explained, specifically pointed out in the appended claims and illustrated in the accompanying drawing in which:

Figure l is a perspective view of my invention, the same being shown as operatively applied for notching a floor joist. Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof, the notch or groove to be cut in the joist being indicated by 'dot ted lines. Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the appliance or machine shown in Fig. 2. Fig. & is a face view of'the rotary cutting element. Fig. 5 is a detail section on the line 5-5 on Fig. 3 and illustrates one of the ball bearings hereinafter referred to.

In the practical arrangement my joist notching appliance I or machine, comprises, essentially, a supporting frame, a, rotary cutting element so mounted on the framing that it can beheld against the exposed edge of the floor 'o'rceiling joist, as the operator remains standing on the floor, and a crank operated gear driving mechanism for actuating the cutting element, the said frame, the cutting element and the crank actuated means being relatively so combined that the operator can conveniently hold the machine or appliance with one hand to the work as he applies the power crank with the other hand, in the manner clearly indicated in Fig. 1 of the drawing.

The frame of the appliance or machine includes two side members or standards 1-1 connected at the upper end by a cross head 2 and at points along its height by the horizontal slotted braces or blocks 3-3, one of which is shown in section in Fig. 5, from which it will be seen the side arms 3030 of the said braces are adjustably mounted and are all gripped against thestandards 11 by the clamping bolts 44. The supporting frame also includes a base portion that consists of a yoke-like body having oppositely disposed pairs of leg members 10 joined at theirlower ends by cross members 12 and eachprovided with a vertical socket 11. Members 12 have bearings 23 that receive a shaft 6 upon which is mounted a rotary cutting element or disk 7, presently again referred to.

Cooperative with eachpair of leg portions 10 are foot members 55, having rod-like shanks that slidably engage the sockets 11 in the leg members 10 and which are normally forced outwardly by coiled springs 50 mounted upon the said shanks between the foot members 5 and the legs 10, as is clearly shown in Fig. 3 of the drawing.

The cutting disk 7 before referred to is vertically disposed and is mounted to rotate between the two sets of leg portions 1010 of the yoke frame and the said disk is of greater diameter than the distance between the foot portions 55, as is best shown in Fig. 2, the reason for which will hereinafter appear.

j The cutting element, in my machine or appliance, shown in detail in Fig. 4:, in practice, is in the nature of a disk 7 one inch Wide and six and one-half inches in diameter, and the same includes six saw segments and three chisels all of which can be readily replaced or sharpened, as may be required. The saw segments each consist of a blade 8, three being provided for each side of the disk, and'they are alternately disposed. The opposite faces of the disk 7 have radial sockets 70 in which the blades 8 are held by set screws 71. Disk 7 is also formed with a series of peripheral notches 72 in'each of which a chisel 9 is adjustably mounted and held at the set position by the clamp screws 91 that take in threaded sockets 90 in the said disk 7.

By reason of providing a cutting element constructed as shown and described and arranged as is clearly shown in Figs..1' and 2, it is apparent that in holding the said cutting element against the joist edge the saws cut the two opposite kerfs or notches, see 03-a: on Fig. 3, while the chisels follow and dig out the material between the said notches wa:, as they are being deepened by forcing the cutter up to the work.

To provide against an abrupt cutting action and for steadying the appliance during the operation of forming the notch, the foot members are in the nature of yielding abutments since their rods or shanks 50 carry stout coiled springs that act as cushion or buffer bearings, while holding the foot members against the edge of the joist, it being understood that as the pressure on the machine is increased to force the cutting element into the partially cut notch the said rods or shanks move back into the sockets in the yoke frame, (see Fig. 2)

Vv hile I have illustrated my machine or appliance as especially adapted for cutting the notches in floor joists the said appliance may be readily utilized for cutting the notches in ceiling joists, byadding extension rods or standards (see as, Figs. 1 and to the socketed ends 1 of the standards to serve as the handle end of the machine. As a convenient means for operating the cutting element I employ the'sprocket and chain gearing best shown in Fig. 2, and wh ch mcludes a large sprocket wheel 13 to which the operating crank 14: is fastened, and the said wheel 13 is mounted on a bearing 16 on the upper adjustable brace or block on the standards 1.

17 designates a driving chain that takes over the gear wheel 13 and over a sprocket pinion 18 integral or otherwise secured to a large gear 19 on a shaft 21 ournaled 1n the next lower bracket or block member on the standards 1 and over which takes a chain 22 that engages a sprocket pinion on the shaft that carries the rotary cutting element. The several journals have ball bearings arranged, as indicated on Fig. 5.

In practice, the lower or yoke portion of the main frame may be secured to the side rods or standards 1 in any approved manner, for example, by threading the lower ends of the said rods 1 into sockets 1O formed on the yoke frame 10 and securing the said ends by a lock pin 10 as indicated on Figs. 2 and 3. By forming the main frame of a pairof side rods or standards and joining the said standards by the adjustable brace or block members, as illustrated in detail in Fig. 5, a convenient means is provided for supporting the chain drive wheels when arranging'the appliance for use either as a floor oist notcher or for working on ceiling joists, for the reasons the only change in the driving gear required when the side standards are of length for using the device overhead, being the use of a longer drive chain from the upper gear to the speed pinion with which it connects, see Fig. 1, which shows the side standards in sections, and Fig. 2, which shows the short side standards.

From the foregoing description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, the complete construction, the manner of peration and the advantages of my invention will readily appear.

By reason of providing the main frame with two opposite sets of foot members and mounting the cutting mechanism, as shown, the machine or appliance can be so adjusted that the notch begins from either side of the exposed edge of the oist, the foot members at one side forming the bearing or abutment position of the frame held against the oist and which are constantly advanced across the joist edge as the notch is cut, it being obvious that the other foot members follow along in the notched space and hence cannot impede the advancing of the notch cutter as it is moved laterally across the oist.

In the practical use of a machine constructed as described and whose cutting elements are proportioned as stated it is possible to out two notches, two and one-half inches deep and one and one-fourth inches wide per minute, and the said notch can be readily widened by moving the appliance to make repeated cuttings.

What I claim is 1. A mechanism for cutting notches in joists; that comprises a frame, a rotary cutting disk having a peripheral cutting face, said element being mounted on the frame and adapted for having its peripheral cutting face held to the work, the said frame including a yieldable base for resting against the face of the joist to be notched, the said yieldable base comprising two sets of resilient foot members one set of each of the said members being located at each side face of the disk.

2. In a mechanism for cuttingtransverse notches in the tops of joists; the combination of a frame that includes two opposite sets of foot members, said members being yieldably mounted 011 the frame to permit of moving the frame along the foot members toward the work, a rotary cutter having a peripheral cutting edge carried by the frame and mounted between the opposite sets of foot members and adapted for having its peripheral cutting edge held to the work, the said two sets of'foot members being spaced apart a distance less than the diameter of the rotary cutter, whereby as one set of foot members is being used as the bearings for the cutter carrying frame, the other set of foot members is movable through the cut notch as the said frame is moved laterally across the top of the joist being notched.

3. In a joist notching appliance, the combination with a main frame including a pair of side rods and a handle connection for the same at the upper end thereof, a yoke member on the lower end of the said side rods, said yoke memberincluding opposite pairs of leg portions each including a yieldable foot member, clamping brackets adjustably mounted on the said rods and provided with journal bearings, a cutting element having a peripheral cutting face rotatably mounted edgewise in the aforesaid yoke member of the main frame and with its cutting face adapted for being moved beyond the foot members, chain wheels having their shafts journaled in the bearings of the clamping brackets, a chain wheel on the said shafts, a chain wheel on the cutter shaft, and a drive chain and pinion connections that join the several chain wheels, one of the said chain wheels having a crank member for actuating them.

a. In a joist cutting machine of the character stated; the combination with the main framing consisting of a lower yoke portion, side standards that extend up from the said yoke portion, ahandle member that joins the upper ends of the said standards, the said yoke portion including opposite sets of legs, each of which has a vertical socket, a foot member for each leg that includes a shank slidably mounted in the respective leg sockets, a coil spring cooperatively engaging the foot portion and the yoke frame, a notching disk having a peripheral cutting face mounted in the said yoke portion of the main frame to rotate edgewise between the opposite sets of foot members, and a crank controlled chain and gear mechanism mounted on the framing and connecting with the cutter disk for imparting rotary motion.

5; A joist notcher comprising a frame composed of a pair of parallel rods, a cross member that forms a hand-hold connecting the upper ends of the rods, a yoke frame secured to the lower ends of the said rods, said yoke frame including two sets of oppositely disposed leg portions and cross members that connect with their respective sets of leg portions, a rotary cutter mounted on the said yoke frame between the two sets of leg portions and whose shaft has hearings in the aforesaid cross member of the frame, clamp braces adjustably mounted on the aforesaid pairs of rods and each having a stud axle, drive chain and gear connections mounted on the said stud axles and the rotary cutter shaft, and two oppositely disposed sets of foot members mounted in the opposite sets of leg portions of the frame and tension means that tend to normally force the leg members outwardly with respect to the frame.

JOHN W. MADIGAN.

Witnesses:v

G. C. McLAUcHLIN, R. E. MOORE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

